The exuberant and mysterious North Korean cheerleaders have had spectators at the PyeongChang Olympics buzzing, descending on events featuring North Korean athletes. They’re a topic of fascination for their southern neighbours and the rest of their world, an extremely visible branch of a closed-off dictatorship.

You won’t get any personal details directly from this 229-woman group or their supervisors, but a report from the Wall Street Journal has the facts, and they are something.

For one, Kim Jong Un’s wife was once part of the squad back in the mid-2000s before he was supreme leader.

In fact, the whole squad is apparently composed of women from elite families in North Korea. Most are likely students from performing arts schools. And while they might be fun to watch, they do have a purpose.

The Journal cites one expert who explains they’re making emotional appeals to loosen sanctions against North Korea and push the idea of “national cooperation.”

A report from The Sun details stringent beauty standards for the cheerleaders, who are closely supervised and subjected to intense training. To be a cheerleader, they must be above 5-foot-3 and, well, attractive.

The cheerleaders in action. Pic: Getty

Getting darker, a report from the U.S. State Department also mentions that 21 of them had been sent to a prison camp.

These cheerleaders have appeared at athletic events in the past when North Korea has competed, but their presence in PyeongChang obviously carries the largest spotlight.

However comely and/or creepy they might appear, they sure are a reminder of what kind of a regime we’re dealing with.

The cheerleaders in action. Pic: Getty

People took to social media in their droves to share their thoughts on the matter.

I can report South Koreans here in Pyeongchang are not as enthralled with Kim Yo Jong and the North Korean cheerleaders as it seems some media are back home.

Something about N.K. killing, starving, & imprisoning its people while threatening South Korea with nuclear annihilation.

All you need to know about the media’s not-so-secret love for Marxist dictatorships can be seen in their treatment of the collectivist machine-like behavior of North Korean cheerleaders and the Chinese Olympics opening ceremony.

After the last North Korean dictator died, citizens who didn't look sad enough or weep convincingly enough were sent to concentration camps. Keep that in mind when you see the footage of the cheerleaders.